A palatal arch expander assembly is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,816,800. And various palatal and other orthodontic devices are available commercially from various sources such as an orthodontic laboratory in Park Rapids, Minn. known as NorthStar Orthodontics, Inc. NorthStar Orthodontics provides, for example, the Porter Arch and the Quad Helix Expander.
A palatal expander is also known as a rapid palatal expander, a rapid maxillary expansion appliance, a palate expander, or an orthodontic expander. A palatal expander is used to expand the palate of a patient apart to allow the upper jaw to widen. Although the use of an expander is most common in children, it can be and has selectively been used in adults. In widening the upper jaw of the patient, the known expanders can result in physical separation of the upper jaw and can also result in a large gap between the patient's upper two front teeth.
Since the palate as a bone (the palatine processes) serves as the roof of the oral cavity as well as the floor of the nasal cavity, a significant consequence of the known expanders is that they can alter the anatomical relationship between the oral cavity and the nasal cavity. These known expanders can result in the functional disruption of the palatine processes as the anatomical barrier, causing communication between these cavities. Patients may experience pressure, pain, and headaches while wearing palatal expanders. Braces typically are used to straighten all or some of the patient's teeth after an expander has been used to widen the patient's upper jaw.